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Meet Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid, who called The Kashmir Files movie ‘vulgar propaganda’ as IFFI jury head

OpIndia Staff
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Meet Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid, who called The Kashmir Files movie ‘vulgar propaganda’ as IFFI jury head

On November 28, Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid sparked a controversy by calling filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri’s film The Kashmir files ‘vulgar’ and ‘propaganda’ during his concluding remarks at the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) that was held in Goa. In his remarks, Lapid attempted to show his opinions as a collective agreement from all the jury members.

However, another jury member categorically denied being part of the statement and said the issue was not raised during jury meetings. He added that Lapid gave the statement in his personal capacity.

Who is Nadav Lapid?

Nadav Lapid is a writer and filmmaker born in Tel Aviv, Israel, in 1975. He studied philosophy at Tel Aviv University and Literature in Paris. In 2001, he published a novel titled “Continua Bailando”. He has worked as a cinematographer on several documentaries. In 2006, he graduated from Sam Spiegel Film School, Jerusalem. In 2011, he received a special jury prize for the Policeman, his debut feature film, at Locarno International Film Festival.

In 2019, he was awarded the Golden Bear at Berlin Film Festival. In 2014, his film The Kindergarten Teacher premiered during the Critic Week section of the Cannes Feature Festival. In 2016, he served as a jury member for Cannes Film Festival’s Critics Week. He has won numerous awards throughout his lesser-known career as a filmmaker.

Nadav’s connection to IFFI

Nadav’s name has been linked to IFFI before. His 2014 film The Kindergarten Teacher’s actor Sarit Larry won the Best Actor Award (Female) at the 45th edition of the fil awards.

Earlier controversies linked to Nadav

Filmmaker Nadav Lapid is known for being a Palestine sympathiser and often speaking against his own homeland Israel. The 47-year-old Israeli filmmaker was among a group of 250 Israeli filmmakers who signed an open letter to protest against the Shomron Film Fund. As per reports, the group felt that it had only one goal, which was to invite Israeli filmmakers to “actively participate in whitewashing the Occupation in exchange for financial support and prizes.” The main aim of the said film fund is to provide finance to the films created by the settlers and about Jewish settlements. After the backlash from the group of filmmakers, including Lapid, the veteran filmmakers had come in support of the fund and called it “a new home for creation”.

In 2019, during one of his interviews with the Now Toronto magazine about his movie Synonyms, Lapid called the collective soul of Israel a “sick soul”. He said, “The film talks about the collective Israeli soul, and the Israeli collective soul is a sick soul. Something in the deepest essence of Israeli existence is false – it is rotten. It’s not just Benjamin Netanyahu – it’s not special to Israel. But, at the same time, I think this Israeli sickness or nature is characterised by young Israeli men who are muscular, smiling, who don’t raise any questions and don’t have any doubts. They are extremely proud of being Israeli. They have a total dichotomist vision of existence: Us versus all the others.”

In 2021, with his film Ahed’s Knee, Lapid tried to show his “love-hate” relationship with the homeland. The film was inspired by his own experience of “government meddling”, reports suggested. In a press conference, he said, “A sort of intimacy towards Israel sneaked behind my back and got into the screen.” He added, “want to show how people’s souls are changed, tormented, perverted sometimes by a state, by a place, less than talking about the state of Israel itself.”

Lapid, despite having a sharply critical view of his own country, was invited to IFFI as chief jury. The lesser-known filmmaker’s credentials do not seem well-versed to be the chief jury member of a film festival that has been going on for over 50 years.

YS Jagan Mohan Reddy’s sister arrested after scuffle between her supporters and KCR party workers

OpIndia Staff
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YS Jagan Mohan Reddy’s sister arrested after scuffle between her supporters and KCR party workers

YS Sharmila, the sister of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and YSRTP president, was arrested Monday (November 28) in Telangana’s Warangal district after a scuffle broke out between her supporters and ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) members. The incident took place in Lingagiri village under Warangal’s Chennaraopeta block, where Sharmila was on a padayatra (march) with her supporters.

In a viral video of her being arrested and taken away by the Telangana police, YS Sharmila angrily questioned the Telangana police, “Why are you arresting me? I am the victim here not the accused.”

Notably, Sharmila, who founded the YSR Telangana Party (YSRTP), has been on a ‘padyatra’ since last October. She has travelled 3,500 kilometres so far. Yesterday, she was in Narsampet where she criticised TRS MLA Peddi Sudarshan Reddy accusing him of extorting money from people, indulging in land grabbing and threatening contractors.

Her remarks apparently enraged members from Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao’s (KCR) party, who attacked and set fire to the van in which Ms Sharmila was travelling during her ‘padyatra.’ This apparently enraged her supporters, who got into a brawl with TRS party workers.

According to media reports, TRS activists attacked Sharmila’s convoy and set fire to a bus where she spent the night and rested during the day. Some YSRTP leaders’ vehicles were also vandalised. The YSRTP workers resisted the TRS workers’ attack, resulting in fights between the two factions.

According to Narasampet Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) RV Phaninder, some people attempted to set fire to Sharmila’s bus. “As the local police rushed to the spot, they fled the spot. We are on the lookout for them,” he said.

Sharmila was later arrested by police and taken to Hyderabad. Her party members organised a protest and barricaded the roadways, prompting police to use force to disperse them.

Sharmila questioned why the police arrested her rather than prosecuting those responsible for the vandalism. “We have permission for our padayatra. Why are the police stopping me?” she asked.

Telangana police say arrested Sharmila as it was not possible to provide security

The Telangana police reportedly told her that providing security to her would be difficult since activists from the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) had been mobilised everywhere and were attempting to chase her. So she was arrested and shifted towards Narsampet.

‘Democracy or a Taliban kingdom’: YS Sharmila hits out at ruling TRS party after her arrest

Following her arrest, Sharmila took to Twitter and questioned the move saying. “Is it a democracy or a Taliban kingdom?”

“The TRS government is plotting to arrest me who is fighting for the people. TRS is inciting goons by using the police as workers. Is this a democracy or Taliban?” she tweeted.

‘Liberals’ blame BJP IT cell for Israeli Ambassador apologising for their countryman denying the genocide of Kashmiri Pandits

Jinit Jain
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‘Liberals’ blame BJP IT cell for Israeli Ambassador apologising for their countryman denying the genocide of Kashmiri Pandits

The left-leaning ‘liberals’, who had been bouncing off the walls ever since Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid denied the genocide of Kashmiri Pandits, blamed the BJP IT Cell after Israeli ambassador to India Naor Gilon apologised for his fellow countryman’s uninformed comments on ‘The Kashmir Files’.

Lambasting the leftist filmmaker, Naor Gilon said that he should have been a bit sensitive towards the sufferings of Kashmiri Hindus and apologise to Indians for the “bad manner” in which he repaid them for their generosity and friendship.

The Israeli ambassador also highlighted how he has been receiving messages from people expressing their displeasure with Lapid’s despicable remarks denying the genocide of Kashmiri Pandits and doubting movies like The Schindler’s List, Holocaust, and the persecution of Jews in Germany.

“You will go back to Israel thinking that you are bold and ‘made a statement’. We, the representatives of Israel, would stay here. You should see our DM boxes following your “bravery” and what implications it may have on the team under my responsibility. The friendship between the people and the states of India and Israel is very strong and will survive the damage you have inflicted. As a human being I feel ashamed and want to apologise to our hosts for the bad manner in which we repaid them for their generosity and friendship,” Gilon said in his open letter to Lapid.

Liberals defame BJP IT Cell after Naor Gilon apologises for Nadav Lapid’s comments denying the genocide of Kashmiri Pandits

But no sooner did Gilon slam Lapid for his remarks against ‘The Kashmir Files’ movie, a raft of left-leaning liberals, who are always on the prowl to undermine statements that challenge their narrative, blamed the BJP IT Cell for forcing the Israeli ambassador to apologise over his countryman’s comment on ‘The Kashmir Files’.

Sakshi Joshi, a YouTuber who pretends to be a journalist, took to Twitter and posted a gibberish rant against ‘Bhakts’, a term that the Left uses for Indians who stand up for nationalism and patriotism.

liberals Hilton
Source: Twitter

Rohini Singh, who had recently mocked Akshay Kumar with a ‘Canadian’ jibe for standing in support of the Indian Army, went into raptures about Nadav Lapid, an Israeli filmmaker who denied the genocide of Kashmiri Pandits. Responding to Gilon’s thread, Singh accused the nationalists of registering their protest to the Israeli ambassador.

liberals Hilton
Source: Twitter

Then, there were others who blamed the BJP IT Cell for Gilon’s apology over Lapid’s comments.

Source: Twitter

The modus operandi of the Left to demonise the BJP IT Cell and mask genuine criticism as contrived outrage

For the left-leaning liberals, who are used to living in an ever-shrinking echo chamber, any voice of criticism of their narrative, even well-meaning ones, is a product of the BJP IT Cell. Indians, who felt genuinely outraged by Lapid’s disgraceful remarks against The Kashmir Files, a movie that chronicles the atrocities faced by Kashmiri Hindus that eventually led to their exodus from the Valley, registered their protest with the Israeli ambassador.

But the ‘liberals’ used a broad brush to paint everyone who objected to Lapid’s remarks as members of the BJP IT cell involved in pushing the saffron party’s bidding. Anyone who dared to criticise Lapid for his remarks or registered their protest to the Israeli ambassador for his countryman’s denial of the genocide of Kashmiri Pandits, the ‘liberals’ pigeonholed them members of the BJP IT Cell.

This modus operandi of using sweeping generalisations serves two purposes. It discredits genuine criticism as propaganda-driven outrage and vilifies the BJP IT Cell as an organisation involved in online mobbing, even at the cost of maligning honest critics and painting them as members of the IT Cell.

How the ‘liberals’ leaned on now-withdrawn Tek Fog and Meta stories to defame India

And to make the BJP IT Cell all that powerful and omnipotent to force diplomats and foreign envoys into apologising, the ‘liberals’ lean on fiction peddled by far-left propaganda organisations like ‘The Wire’, which recently came up with Meta Story to allege that BJP IT Cell head Amit Malviya had the power of pulling down any Instagram post from across the world that he found offensive.

However, to the liberals’ chagrin, The Wire’s deceit was called out after several social media users and independent researchers listed by the organisation refuted the claims made by the propaganda website. Subsequently, The Wire pulled down all its reports on the Meta Story and promised an internal probe over its fiasco.

The expose of The Wire’s story had implications for its earlier reports, where it claimed that BJP has a fictitious super app called ‘Tek Fog’ to manipulate social media trends and control the online narrative. In its statement, The Wire said it would also look into the older reports by the authors of Meta stories. At that time, it was unclear if Tek Fog stories would come under scanner in The Wire’s “internal investigation” or not. But the leftist portal suspended its Tek Fog stories too, indicating their suspicion over the veracity of claims made in those reports.

In the story claiming to be the existence of a fictitious and mysterious app named ‘Tek Fog’, The Wire had claimed that it allowed BJP to bypass all security measures available in top social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, Telegram etc, and helped create and delete dozens of accounts at the click of a button. They claimed BJP could hijack social media trends and target hatred towards journalists using the app, adding that the app had the ability to bypass email and OTP verifications required to log on to those platforms to create temporary accounts.

Similar to the Meta story, netizens had exposed the massive loopholes in the Tek Fog story too. That story also entirely relied on ‘screenshots’ of the so-called app and didn’t have any other verifiable evidence. And again, like the Meta story, the Tek Fog story was also questioned by tech experts who are not supporters of the BJP. 

However, despite questions and doubts over its authenticity, several dubious international organisations cited The Wire’s Tek Fog stories and lowered India’s ranking on their prejudiced indices. From Freedom House to Reporters Without Borders (RSF) to The Washington Post, Bloomberg, and Wikipedia, a mesh of leftist organisations and media outlets promoted The Wire’s fiction about Tek Fog, underscoring how a global nexus was at play to tarnish India’s reputation.

Congress and the leftist ecosystem endorse views of Palestine sympathising Israeli filmmaker who denied genocide of Kashmiri Hindus at IFFI 2022

OpIndia Staff
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Congress and the leftist ecosystem endorse views of Palestine sympathising Israeli filmmaker who denied genocide of Kashmiri Hindus at IFFI 2022

Vivek Agnihotri’s blockbuster film The Kashmir Files, which had previously thrown Islamists and the entire leftist ecosystem into disarray, has once again made headlines after Israeli filmmaker and jury head at the International Film Festival of India (IFFI), Nadav Lapid, referred to the Kashmiri Hindu genocide perpetrated by Pakistan-backed Islamist terrorists in the late 1980s and early 1990s as “vulgar propaganda.”

While several individuals from different walks of life, including Naor Golin, the Israeli Ambassador to India, Sri Lanka and Bhutan, have chastised the left-wing filmmaker for attempting to undermine the Kashmiri Hindu massacre, the typical suspects of the leftist ecosystem and opposition parties, especially the Congress have come out in defence of Nadav.

Members of the Congress party, which has taken an exceedingly controversial stance on the film from its conception to its success, flocked to Twitter to support the Palestinian-sympathizing Israeli filmmaker. The grand old party has not only been dismissing the veracity of the Kashmiri Hindus genocide but also casting aspersions on the film-makers’ sincere efforts to expose the unspoken and harsh truth about the Islamic terror in the valley in the 1990s that forced thousands of Kashmiri Pandits to flee their homeland.

INC youth leader Srinivas BV reasserted his party’s position on the massacre of Kashmiri Hindus by sharing a snippet of Nadav Lapid’s closing remark at the 53rd edition of the IFFI festival held in Goa between November 20 and November 28, where he said he was “shocked” and “disturbed” by the inclusion of the film Kashmir Files in the competition section.

“PM Modi, his govt, BJP, the RW ecosystem feverishly promoted ‘The Kashmir Files’ A movie rejected by International Film Festival Of India. Jury Head Nadav Lapid called it ‘propaganda, vulgar movie – inappropriate for the film festival’. Hate gets called out, eventually,” tweeted Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate.

On expected lines, Swati Chaturvedi, the abusive troll masquerading as a journalist, jumped in to support the Congress spokesperson for mocking BJP for promoting The Kashmir Files.

The left-leaning Bollywood entertainer Swara Bhasker also went on to back Lapid for discrediting the Kashmiri genocide.

Likewise, many other members of this ‘elite’ leftist ecosystem went on to endorse views of Palestine sympathising with the Israeli filmmaker who denied the genocide of Kashmiri Hindus at IFFI 2022.

Notably, when Vivek Agnihotri’s movie- The Kashmir Files, a film based on the genocide of Kashmiri Hindus had hit the theatre in March 2022 and went on to become a roaring success, the same set of leftist liberals and Islamist apologists, including members of the grand old party were thrown completely off balance. Not only did they downplay the whole Kashmiri Hindu genocide but also effectively exonerated the Islamists who carried it out.

At first, the Congress Kerala tried to blame the BJP for the genocide. Then Congress went on to blame Governor Jagmohan, the man who actually saved Kashmiri Hindus from a fate much worse than the exodus. “Jagmohan theory” is a long-peddled lie by Congress and its cabal to give a clean chit to the Islamists for their actions in 1990.

Following this, the party’s media head in Chhattisgarh effectively exonerated the Islamists who carried it out. Then its senior leader Jairam Ramesh went on to not only dismiss the veracity of the Kashmiri Hindus genocide but also cast aspersions on the film-makers’ sincere efforts to expose the unspoken and harsh truth about the Islamic terror in the valley in the 1990s that forced thousands of Kashmiri Pandits to flee their homeland.

Notably, several first-generation Kashmiri victims have come forward since the film’s release to testify that the film is, in its entirety, based on pure truth and facts. Many victims sobbed after seeing the film, exemplifying how relatable it was to them. Furthermore, the ‘Jagmohan conspiracy,’ which Congress continues to exploit to blame the BJP for the Kashmiri Hindu Genocide, has also been debunked a million times over the last three decades. Despite this, since the release of The Kashmir Files, the ruffled Congress members and the entire leftist cabal have either questioned the film’s veracity and discredited the filmmakers or blamed the BJP for the genocide.

UP: Suhail arrested for kidnapping and assaulting a 15-year-old Hindu girl from the Dalit community in Baghpat

OpIndia Staff
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UP: Suhail arrested for kidnapping and assaulting a 15-year-old Hindu girl from the Dalit community in Baghpat

One Suhail has been arrested by police for allegedly kidnapping a 15-year-old Hindu girl from the Dalit community in Uttar Pradesh’s Baghpat district. The accused has been booked under IPC Sections 363, 506, POCSO Act Section 7/8 and Section 3 (20(V)(a) of the SC-ST Act.

The case pertains to the Singhawali Ahir police station area in the Baghpat district. As per reports, the 15-year-old girl went missing last Wednesday (November 23) from her school at 08:30 AM. Following this, a complaint of kidnapping was registered at the local police station at 10:30 AM and the police started investigating the matter. The girl is the niece of the Bharatiya Janata Party District General Secretary.

As soon as the information about the kidnapping was received, officers from many police stations launched a search operation in the neighbouring woods, led by the Superintendent of Police. The dog squad was also called in to assist in the quest for the female student. After much searching, the police discovered her uniform and school bag in a neighbouring forest.

The search was intensified, and the girl was eventually found in a section of the forest at about 06:30 PM on November 23. Superintendent of Police Neeraj Kumar Jadaun stated that the missing girl was found safe and sound in the jungle at about 6.30 PM. According to the SP, the girl student was taken to a local hospital for a medical assessment. The SP awarded a Rs 25,000 prize and citation to the police team in charge of the matter.

The accused was arrested from the spot by the police. Later, he was identified as Suhail son of Abbas resident of Singhawali Ahir village in Baghpat. He was booked for kidnapping the girl (IPC Section 363), attempting to outrage the modesty of a woman (IPC Section 506), and sexually exploiting a minor girl (POCSO Act) and relevant sections of the SC-ST Act. The accused is now in police custody and further action is now being taken by the authorities.

Mangaluru: 3 persons named Khalib, Dr Jameela and Aiman booked for forcing a Hindu woman to convert to Islam

OpIndia Staff
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Mangaluru: 3 persons named Khalib, Dr Jameela and Aiman booked for forcing a Hindu woman to convert to Islam

According to reports, three people, including a woman doctor, were charged in Mangaluru under the Karnataka Protection of Right to Freedom of Religion Bill, 2022, for allegedly attempting to convert a girl to Islam against her will.

The police filed an FIR after receiving a complaint from the 20-year-old victim’s mother, who stated that she used to work at New Fans Bazar in Bikarnakatte and used to recharge her phone at a shop owned by one Khalib in Kaikamba.

Khalib ultimately befriended the victim, and offered her a better job and compensation. According to the girl’s allegations, he took her to his relative’s house in Kallapu on January 14, 2021, where she was introduced to a woman who compelled her to perform namaz and read the Quran. She alleged they tried to convert her to Islam by force. The woman has also accused Khalib of assaulting her after taking her to the home of a relative.

According to the complaint, the victim, who is a resident of Mangaluru, was given a burqa, was told to change her name to Ayisha, and was threatened to convert to Islam. On January 17, 2021, the victim came home and concealed the incident from her family for fear of negative consequences.

She worked in a house for eight months before being hired by a woman named Rukiya at another residence in Kasargod. She was employed there for seven months. While she was working there, a coworker named Sainaz offered her a position at the home of Dr Jameela and her husband Dr Sayyed, as per the complaint.

The complainant said that while working at their house, Jameela coerced her into donning a burqa and presenting herself as a Muslim woman. In October, she announced her resignation from her job, claiming she had mental health problems. In the meanwhile, the woman received a message from a man from Bhadravathi named Aiman who urged her to start dating him. She had travelled to Bhadravathi to meet him.

The complainant has requested that the police investigate Khalib, Dr Jameela, Aiman, and Khalib’s relatives for allegedly pushing her to convert to Islam. Sections 3 and 5 of the Karnataka Protection of Right to Freedom of Religion Ordinance 2022, as well as sections 354, 354(A), and 506 of the IPC, are all being used by the police to prosecute all the cases.

Meet Lotta Volkova – The alleged brains behind the controversial shoot of luxury brand Balenciaga

OpIndia Staff
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Meet Lotta Volkova – The alleged brains behind the controversial shoot of luxury brand Balenciaga

The luxury brand Balenciaga is facing a lot of criticism for its disturbing portrayal of children for its Spring/Summer 2023 Collection. The brand recently published pictures of two pre-pubescent girls with bondage gear, reminding people of ‘BDSM’. The children were shown posing with teddy bears, which were dressed in fishnet tops, leather harnesses, and collars with locks. Reportedly, one of the disturbing images also contained documents from a child abuse case.

The photographer who shot the photographs is getting all the heat from the public, but the real brain behind the shoot is someone else. As per a Twitter user who goes by the handle curioslight, the person behind the shoot is Lotta Volkova, who has been a stylist with Balenciaga since 2014. Gabriele Galimberti, the photographer who shot the collection, claimed in his statement that he was being targeted despite the fact that he had no creative control over the project.

Galimberti said, “I must stress that I was not entitled in whatsoever manner to choose the products or the models. As a photographer, I was only and solely requested to light the given scene and take the shots according to my signature style.” Calling the reaction of the public a form of “lynching”, he claimed he was being accused of being a pedophile on his social media accounts.

Galimberti categorically denied being part of the controversial shoot, and he named an American Photographer, Chris Maggio, to be the man behind that shoot.

Speaking about Chris, Curioslight said that they stumbled upon a photo shoot where the girl looked similar to the one in Balenciaga’s shoot. At first, it was thought to be the same child model, but later it was found that the resemblance was because of the similar style. The shoot was done for a magazine named Double, and Lotta Volkova did the styling.

This is when the can of worms full of controversial and problematic social media posts around the not-so-hidden world of the fashion industry got opened. The Twitter user went through the now-private account of the stylist and found that Volkova has been posting a lot of posts revolving around children. She has worked extensively with brands like Vogue, Adidas, Balenciaga, Chanel, Jean Paul Gaultier, and many others.

Curioslight highlighted how Volkova tagged Gosha Rubchinskiy in one of her posts which had a scene from the horror movie The Shining.

Gosha Rubchinskiy is a fashion designer who got into a controversy in 2019 after his inappropriate chats with a minor boy surfaced that year.

curioslight mentioned that the posts by Lotta from 2015 had visibly young boys. “She has, just like Gosha, an interest in really young-looking boys, it’s really hard to guess their ages, some, I would say, look no more than 13. I could be wrong but have a look at her insta and campaigns,” the twitter user said.

Furthermore, it was revealed how Lotta “liked” the photographs depicting children either in distress, bondage, and images of similar nature.

Some of the posts were even liked and commented on by American fashion designer Marc Jacobs. One of the posts from 2019, which had a little girl with fake blonde hair lying down and smiling, had Jacobs comment saying, “So good”. The Twitter user said, “I found these below incredibly disturbing, and look who’s commenting on the girl that is laying down. Marc Jacobs himself. This rabbit hole I went on took me from a #BalenciagaGate to #FashionGate.” Jacobs is a very popular name in the fashion industry.

The Twitter user also highlighted Lotta’s obsession with teddy bears. In one of the screenshots, the teddy bear was in a “compromised” position.

In another post from 2015, the teddy bear was in bondage, and that post had a comment by Gosha Rubchinskiy.

Further, in the tweets, the user shared screenshots of Volkova’s Instagram account revolving around BDSM. Her obsession with BDSM was visible in her work too, even for high-profile brands like Chanel.

In the next tweet, Curioslight highlighted she posted an image in 2018 with the hashtag Moloch, an ancient pagan God, and people used to sacrifice children to please him.

Interestingly, another user that goes by the handle Xx17965797N pointed out that Balenciaga allegedly also sells fake babies covered in blood.

Another user pointed out that the video was from a fashion show by Balenciaga.

Curioslight also highlighted that Volkova worked with Terry Richardson in 2015. Richardson has been accused of sexual misconduct by several young models. He was also accused of being a pedophile which he had categorically denied on several occasions.

It is evident that the alleged rot in the fashion industry is not limited to a few high-end brands, and a deeper cleanup is required to ensure children’s safety.

Advocate Vineet Jindal files complaint against Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid for calling genocide of Hindu community in Kashmir as ‘vulgar propaganda’

OpIndia Staff
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Advocate Vineet Jindal files complaint against Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid for calling genocide of Hindu community in Kashmir as ‘vulgar propaganda’

On November 29, Advocate Vineet Jindal filed a complaint against Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid for calling the genocide of the Hindu Community in Kashmir as ‘vulgar propaganda’. In his complaint to DGP Goa, Jindal said he was filing a complaint against the filmmaker for his comments against the film The Kashmir Files that he made during the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) that was held between November 20 and November 28.

Nadav called filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri’s film The Kashmir Files “vulgar” and “propaganda”. He further claimed that all the jury members were “shocked and disturbed” as the film was added as one of the participants in the international film competition. He had said, “We were, all of us, disturbed and shocked by the 15th film, The Kashmir Files. That felt to us like a propaganda, vulgar movie, inappropriate for an artistic competitive section of such a prestigious film festival.”

In his complaint, Jindal said, “The statement given by Nadav is totally manipulated and with ill intention towards the Hindu Community in the garb of targeting movie Kashmir files which is more clear when one of the jury members AT IFFI Sudipto Sen through his Twitter account said that “it completely in a personal capacity- nothing to do with the esteemed jury board”. Sen’s remarks came after Nadav faced severe backlash not only from netizens but also from the film fraternity of India. Israeli diplomats have also reacted to his statements.

Jindal added, “The statement of Sudipito Sen shows that no such statement has been approved or discussed upon Kashmir Files between jury members at IFFI, but Nadav must have some hidden agenda in his mind against Hindu Community which came out during his closing speech in IFFI.”

He said, “The film Kashmir Files is based on the exodus and killings of Kashmiri Pandits in the valley in the 1990s by Islamic terrorists. By calling a movie based on a true story of the Hindu Genocide by Islamic terrorists that happened in Kashmir as ‘propaganda’ and ‘vulgar’, he is abusing the sacrifice of Hindus in Kashmir and targeting the Hindu community by using derogatory words Vulgar and Propaganda upon Hindu killings just to incite hatred in our country. The contents of the statement made by him clearly show his intent of instigating enmity between groups.”

Jindal said being a social activist and Hindu by religion, Nadav’s statement has deeply hurt his religious sentiments. He requested the DGP to file a case against Nadav under Sections 121, 153, 153A, 153B,  295, 298 and 505 of the Indian Penal Code. He said, “Nadav Lapid, by making above cited statement has committed offences u/s 121,153,153 A &B, 295,298 and 505 of IPC which are cognizable offences and very serious in nature. The complainant requests you to lodge FIR against him under the above-said section and take strict legal action against him so he can not dare to make such kind of Hateful and disturbing comments again in future.”

Speaking to OpIndia, Jindal said, “The way the Israeli director has commented on The Kashmir Files and called the content of the film ‘vulgar’ and ‘propaganda’ [is hurtful]. The genocide of the Kashmiri Hindus in the valley is our community’s sacrifice. Calling the pain we suffered and things we witnessed in the valley ‘vulgar’ and ‘propaganda’ has hurt our sentiments. This is why I have filed a complaint against the filmmaker to Goa’s DGP and requested him to book the filmmaker under appropriate Sections of the IPC. I feel the statement given by Nadav was planned. Hence, it is crucial to investigate the matter. He said it was a collective statement of the jury to call the film ‘propaganda’ and ‘vulgar’, but a jury member dismissed his claims and said no such discussion happened among the jury members. It appears the filmmaker came with a motive and gave the controversial statement at the closing ceremony of the event.”

Uddhav Thackeray Shiv Sena’s out-on-bail Sanjay Raut opens his mouth again, says more pandits killed after release of Kashmir Files than by Islamists in 90s

OpIndia Staff
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Uddhav Thackeray Shiv Sena’s out-on-bail Sanjay Raut opens his mouth again, says more pandits killed after release of Kashmir Files than by Islamists in 90s

Uddhav Thackeray Shiv Sena’s Sanjay Raut, recently released from jail on bail, has opened his mouth against and waded into the controversy stirred after Israeli filmmaker and Palestinian sympathiser, Nadav Lapid, called the Kashmir Files movie by Vivek Agnihotri a “propaganda” movie.

On November 29, an Israeli filmmaker and International Film Festival of India (IFFI) jury chairman Nadav Lapid called filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri’s film ‘The Kashmir Files’ “vulgar” and “propaganda”. During his closing remarks at the festival, he said he was “shocked” and “disturbed” by the inclusion of the film in the competition section. The 53rd edition of IFFI was held in Goa between November 20 and November 28.

When asked about the comments made by Lapid, who was once accused of hating his own motherland, Israel, Sanjay Raut said that he agreed with the comments made by the IFFI jury chairman. Commenting on Kashmir Files, Sanjay Raut claimed that there were more Kashmiri Hindus who were murdered after the release of the movie Kashmir Files than ever before – essentially insinuating that more Hindus were killed in Kashmir after the movie was released than by Islamists in the 1990s.

It is pertinent to note that while Sanjay Raut has agreed with Lapid and blamed the movie for the killings of Hindus instead of Islamists, the Israeli Ambassador to India apologised for the remarks by Nadav Lapid and said, in an open letter, that he was ashamed of the comments made denying the genocide of Hindus in Kashmir.

“It’s true about #KashmirFiles if some jury member said it. There was propaganda by one party against another. A party Govt, wherever there was a BJP govt, was busy with publicity. But maximum number of killings in Kashmir occurred after this film. You must have seen, Kashmir Pandits, security personnel were killed. Where were these Kashmir Files people then? This anger was displayed by the orphaned children of Kashmiri Pandits also, where were they then? Nobody came forward then, nor were there plans for a Kashmir Files 2.0 – make that too”, Sanjay Raut said.

Interestingly, when asked about the word “vulgar” used for the film by the Lapid, Sanjay Raut said that he had not watched the movie.

The video of the comments made by Sanjay Raut was posted by Zee Marathi. The same video that was posted by ABP Manjha was soon made private, so people could not access it.

Sanjay Raut has been against the movie Kashmir Files by Vivek Agnihotri, which shows the genocide and exodus of Kashmiri Hindus by Islamists in the 1990s, since its very release. After the movie’s release, Raut had taken to Saamna, the Shiv Sena’s official mouthpiece, to allege that the movie was being promoted by BJP with an eye on the Gujarat and Rajasthan Assembly Elections. He had also branded Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the chief promoter of the movie.

In March 2022, a Saamna editorial had gone as far as to brand the Kashmir Files a “fake narrative” that was created by the BJP. The editorial piece in Saamana highlighted how Congress is unable to fight ‘fake narratives’ created by the BJP. It pointed out that Congress should employ innovative methods to counter the narratives the BJP allegedly creates through movies like The Kashmir Files and through the hijab issue.

For the first time in over three decades, an honest attempt in the form of ‘The Kashmir Files’ brought to the silver screen the trials and tribulations faced by the minority Kashmiri Pandits in the Muslim-majority Jammu and Kashmir. This had, predictably, raised the hackles of the left-liberal intelligentsia, who has for years engaged in the pursuit of whitewashing Islamic terrorism and pinning the blame of the exodus on the policies implemented by New Delhi. After the release of the movie, several Left-Liberals blamed the movie for targeted killings of Hindus in the valley, saying that it had angered the Muslim population against the Hindus. What the Left-Liberals had said then and what Sanjay Raut seems to be saying now is that Hindus would only inspire more attacks against themselves if they dare to talk about their own persecution and therefore, it is the vocal Hindu who should be blamed when Islamists murder them out of sheer religious hatred.

The liberals, including politicians like Sanjay Raut, blamed Kashmir Files for the killings of Hindus because firstly, they need to discredit any attempt to create awareness about a Hindu genocide and secondly, because they are incapable of talking about the real cause of Hindus being murdered in the valley – Islamic terrorism. While the liberals seem to be incapable of talking about Islamic terrorism either because they align with the supremacist ideology against Hindus, a common enemy, politicians like Raut seem to be shielding the Islamists simply because their political survival depends on the Muslim vote bloc, with Hindus electorally abandoning parties like Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena faction and politicians like himself.

The 1990s in Kashmir saw an onslaught of Islamic barbarity against Hindus. Kashmir Files depicts several such brutal murders and rapes from the 1990s. For example, the movie depicts the brutality heaped upon Girija Tickoo when she was murdered. On the 4th of June 1990, Girija came to the valley to collect her salary and met her local Muslim colleague at her home. She was not aware that Jihadi terrorists were tracking her movement. Girija was kidnapped from her colleague’s home and was taken to an unknown location. Everyone, including her colleague and people in the locality, watched her being taken silently. After a few days of the kidnapping, her dead body was found on the roadside in horrible condition. The autopsy revealed she was brutally gang-raped and tortured. Girija was cut into two pieces using a mechanical saw while she was still alive, right from the middle of her body. Her family still awaits justice, just like the hundreds and thousands of other Kashmiri Pandits whose suffering has been deemed as ‘propaganda’ by the ‘liberal’ section of the media and society.

One of the most heart-wrenching scenes of the film directed by Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri is where a woman is force-fed rice soaked in her husband’s blood. This is the recreation of a brutal murder from 1990 when terrorists had come searching for engineer BK Ganjoo, who had hidden in a rice barrel. He would have been alive today had his location not been disclosed to the terrorists by his own neighbours. He was shot dead by the terrorists who fired multiple rounds at the rice barrel allowing the blood to drip out of the container. The rice soaked in the blood was then forcefully fed to Ganjoo’s wife.

With the movie depicting such cases of violence against Hindus, Sanjay Raut endorsing the views of Nadav Lapid and saying that more killings took place in Kashmir after the release of the movie, only means that blames Hindus for their persecution simply because they dared to narrate tales of their genocide.

Jharkhand: Clerics ban dance, music, and fireworks in Muslim weddings, call weddings after 11 pm wrong

OpIndia Staff
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Jharkhand: Clerics ban dance, music, and fireworks in Muslim weddings, call weddings after 11 pm wrong

On November 28, a group of Muslim clerics announced a ban on dancing, playing loud music and display of fireworks during Islamic weddings in the Nirsa block of district Dhanbad, Jharkhand. According to the clerics, such practices are un-Islamic, and anyone violating the ban would be fined.

Sibilibadi Jama Masjid’s head Imam Maulana Masud Akhtar said in a statement that the ban would begin from December 2. He said, “We unanimously decided that Nikah (marriage) would be solemnised according to Islamic religion and there would be no dance, DJ music playing and fireworks display. Those who will violate the order will be fined Rs 5,100.”

He added, “Such practices are not permitted in Islam. These also cause inconvenience to people.” Akhtar chaired the meeting during which the decision to ban such practices was announced. Furthermore, it was decided that the marriage has to be solemnised before 11 PM as the time after that is not considered “auspicious”. He said, “If anyone tries to perform the Nikah after 11 PM will also be slapped with a fine. The violator of the norm will have to tender a written apology too.”

Previous diktats against music and celebrations

This is not the first time Muslim clerics have banned celebrations during Nikah. In June 2021, a committee of village clerics and scholars of Raz -e-Muhammad Mustafa of Khempur village at Swar Tehsil in Rampur district, Uttar Pradesh, announced that a Nikah would not be solemnised if the ceremonies include fireworks, DJ, dance and dowry. The resolution was adopted during the committee’s meeting. They announced after the Friday prayers to inform the Muslims in the area.

In March 2021, it was reported that a fatwa was issued by a senior mufti of the Dargah-e-Ala Hazrat in Bareilly, which said that it was against Shariat for males and females to eat food together at weddings. The fatwa said that organisers should maintain a difference between mahram (close relatives) and non-mahrams. It also noted that DJs, music, dance and fireworks during wedding ceremonies are un-Islamic.

In April 2021, Markazi Sunni Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, Mirzapur, announced that they would not solemnise Muslim marriages of music, dance and DJ were part of the ceremonies as they are un-Islamic. The body also restrained Muslims from demanding dowry. Mufti Abdul Khalik said, “A movement has started in Mirzapur against dowry seekers and those who eat while standing up.”

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